Ume Kurumizawa
"I like people who are the exact opposite of me. Straightforward people." - Kurumi to Sawako's parents Ume Kurumizawa (胡桃沢 梅 Kurumizawa Ume) is a character in the series Kimi ni Todoke. Personality Earlier in the Kimi ni Todoke manga, Kurumi initially shows herself as a very cute and nice girl. She was constantly smiling, and Sawako admired her and looked up to her as her role model. She later sheds her fake personality and shows that she can be aggressive and manipulative when it comes to Kazehaya. Kurumi is very honest and upfront about her feelings, later showing that she lacks self-esteem and considers herself to have a "bad personality", something that Sawako vehemently denies. Kurumi is very ambitious and driven no matter what her goal, and is shown to be stressed own and deprived of sleep when studying to become a teacher. As she matures, she becomes more accepting of others' help, such as Sawako's. Background A girl who appears friendly and sweet to everyone around her, she has had a huge crush on Kazehaya since their first year of middle school. She dislikes her given name, Ume, because it sounds old-fashioned and prefers to be called "Kurumi." When she was in middle school, many of the girls hung around her to get attention from other boys who found Kurumi attractive and began to see her as a "boyfriend stealer" since many of the boys they liked would only ask her out. Kurumi was deeply hurt and saddened by this and one day, while crying alone in the classroom, Kazehaya came and comforted her, leading to her developing feelings for him. It is possible that her fake personality comes from the pain she received from the people who she thought were her "friends", who turned out to only use her and that she feels she can't trust others. She is extremely jealous of Sawako , which led her to spread fake rumors of Sawako's only friends at the time, Yoshida and Yano , using Sawako's name. Kurumi does not attend the same class as Sawako or Kazehaya. She eventually confesses her love to Kazehaya, but receives an expected rejection. Because she is always surp rised with Sawako's naivete, Kurumi is able to be her true self in front of Sawako and regards her as a rival for Kazehaya's affection. Following Kazehaya's rejection, she becomes colder to her classmates, but is able to finally express her feelings and personality, which makes them respect her more. After Kazehaya and Sawako become a couple, Kurumi disappears from the series for a while until she reappears later, revealing that she wishes to study to become a teacher, which is Sawako's goal as well. She and Sawako thus form more of a friendship as they agree to help each other do the best they can in pursuing their mutual dream. Relationships Shota Kazehaya Kurumi just used Sawako to get closer to Shota. Sawako Kuronuma She was seen to have a great relationship with Sawako, calling herself Sawako's friend. Later, as a part of her plan, Kurumi wanted Sawako to support her and Kazehaya, and when Sawako tells her she couldn't, Kurumi breaks their friendship. Kurumi admits she never thought Sawako was her friend. Ayane Yano Yoshida Chizuru Kento Miura Kazuichi Arai "Pin" Quotes "I didn't care if I had to lie." '"What is wrong with taking advantage of people? Everyone would take advantage of me and then toss me aside when they were done! What's wrong with me doing the same?!" - '''to Sawako, Ayane, and Chizuru "This person is different. This boy, always surrounded by friends, always sees me for who I really am. I won't tell anyone. I'll never tell a soul. Not until, someday... Kazehaya falls for me." "Aren't you going to tattle on me? Do it so Kazehaya can pity you again." - to Sawako "I like people who are the exact opposite of me. Straightforward people." - Kurumi to Sawako's parents "I'll work according to my style." "When you're in the library, be quiet." "Don't call me Ume!" "Don't you dare think I'm an incompetent woman!" "If you weren't there, I wouldn't have ever been able to tell Kazehaya my feelings. Even though I was rejected, I'm glad that you were my rival, Sawako-chan." - ''to Sawako "I'm planning to go to the University of Education. I'm going to become a teacher." "Ah, geez! No matter where we go, we're always rivals, aren't we?" - Kurumi to Sawako "Geez! I will make sure that I pass!" - Kurumi to Sawako "Sawako-chan... you're so straightforward. I've always envied you, and that irritated me. I've never been able to say it. I-I'm sorry for what I did to you back then. I'm sorry. I can't say that we're friends! There's just no way that I can! The things that I did to you... I won't forget them. I won't forget them for the rest of my life!" - Kurumi to Sawako "For the study session... and teaching me... thank you!" - Kurumi to Sawako Notes *'Kurumi' in Japanese means 'chestnut' or 'walnut' See also Category:Characters Category:Female Character Category:Kitahoro High School Student